The teenager who was paid £35,000 by disgraced news presenter Huw Edwards for sexual photographs has called on BBC chief Tim Davie to resign over the corporation’s handling of the affair.
The 21-year-old accused the BBC of “trying to protect” Edwards after it emerged he was allowed to keep his job and six-figure salary despite being arrested in November.
Edwards, 62, pleaded guilty at Westminster Magistrates’ Court this week to receiving 41 indecent images of children, seven of which were in the most serious category.
The young man said to the MirrorIt is absolutely incredible that he has remained on the payroll… How is that possible?
“It seems the BBC is trying to protect Edwards. Mr Davie should resign.”
He added: “We cannot allow this to happen again. Mr Davie was aware of the arrest but I think it was almost as if the BBC turned a blind eye.”
Huw Edwards arrives at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, London, on Wednesday
Tim Davie defended the decision not to sack Edwards, saying the BBC had made “difficult decisions fairly and judiciously”.
The teenager (file image) who was paid £35,000 by disgraced news presenter Huw Edwards for sexual photographs has called on BBC chief Tim Davie to resign
His comments came after Davie defended the decision not to sack Edwards, saying the BBC had made “difficult decisions fairly and judiciously”.
In an explosive interview with BBC News on Thursday, the director general said: “We knew it was serious, we didn’t know details other than the category of the possible offences.”
But he added that when the charges were made public this week: “We were very shocked. No one knew the details of what we have heard in the last few days, which have been deeply disturbing.”
“In terms of the decision we made in November, we obviously faced a difficult decision and we considered it very carefully,” Davie said.
“The police came to us and informed us that they had arrested Mr Edwards, but they wanted to be absolutely sure that this was a confidential matter. The reason they called us at that time is that it is a technical process to ensure that employees are protected and that there is no risk.”
Mr Davie also revealed that Edwards would still receive his £300,000-a-year pension despite the criminal charges against him.
The young man, who wishes to remain anonymous, was just a teenager when he began messaging the 62-year-old news anchor and exchanging sexual images for money.
Former BBC news presenter Huw Edwards arrives at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London
Huw Edwards pleaded guilty to receiving 41 indecent images of children, including two sexual videos of a boy under the age of nine.
Before Edwards resigned in April on medical advice, he had been paid between £475,000 and £479,999 for the year 2023/24, according to the BBC’s latest annual report.
Edwards paid the man, who was 17 at the time, a total of £35,000 and then allegedly asked him to sign a confidentiality agreement.
The boy’s mother and stepfather filed a police complaint in April 2023, but three months later detectives said no crime had been committed between them.
However, the 21-year-old said he felt “set up” by the disgraced presenter.
The young man, who actively defended Edwards at the time, claimed he was in a “disturbed state of mind” when he first approached the former News at Ten presenter.
Speaking to the Mirror earlier this week, she said: “I’ve stayed silent for so long to protect Huw, but I feel sick about what’s happened.”
He was homeless and in a last-ditch attempt to get help he started messaging celebrities online. Edwards was the only one who responded and sent him £500 to stay in a hotel for a few nights.
After this he alleged that Edwards asked him for things in return, which he felt unable to refuse due to the ‘power’ of the announcer.
“I needed help and I did it. I feel like he preyed on my vulnerability… because he knew I needed the money. I felt like I was being manipulated.”
She added: “I felt like he was taking advantage of me, but I felt I had to listen to him because he was Huw Edwards.”
However, everything came crashing down when the then-teenager’s mother found messages between the two asking them to meet at Cardiff train station.
Newly released footage shows the stepfather confronting Edwards at a train station as he waited to meet the teenager.
The mother then contacted her son to tell him that his stepfather was on his way to confront Edwards.
This message is known to have been passed on to Edwards, who then hurried off on the next train back to London without their meeting ever taking place.
Images taken in May last year show Edwards on a train station platform waiting to meet a man for a secret rendezvous.
Drawing of Edwards made by a court artist. The veteran news presenter pleaded guilty to three charges of making indecent images of children, between December 2020 and August 2022
Recalling the incident, the stepfather told The Sun: “I was so angry. I just wanted to confront him and tell him to stop what he was doing.
“I didn’t even care if I was arrested: I wanted everyone to know what was happening.”
The stepfather then attempted to lodge an official complaint with the nearby BBC regional office, where he was given a number to call the BBC in London.
The stepfather claims the number was not working, but the family eventually managed to contact the BBC’s Audience Service, which referred the case to the organisation’s Corporate Investigations team.
The family then turned to The Sun newspaper, which published the shocking claim that Edwards had paid for explicit photos.
Before the scandal broke last year, Edwards was one of the BBC’s most famous stars, where she covered major events for BBC News, including the death of the Queen and the coronation of King Charles.
The Director General was due to meet Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy on Thursday to explain the BBC’s role in the scandal, including who had knowledge of Edwards’ arrest in November last year.
Lisa Nandy is now calling on Edwards to pay back the huge £200,000 salary he received after the arrest and while he was suspended from the BBC.
MailOnline has contacted the BBC for comment.